Good Enough
by Xerizzelles
Summary: Jessi desperately wants to know why Kyle likes Amanda so much, so she tries piano, playing masterfully, and even singing one of her favorite songs,"Good Enough" by Evanescence, unaware of who might be hearing... Part 1 posted Rated M for Part 3...


A/N: This idea came to me after watching **Evanescence**'s _Good Enough_ video a second time. Check it out on Youtube! Begins after Season 3 "Chemistry 101". I'm trying to post one part a month.

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Part 1: Jessi

The light from the east had yet to scare away the dark allure of the moon, when a jolt of pain attacked her temple. Hazel eyes fluttered opened instantly as her hand reached her forehead, massaging the muscles there. Her brow furrowed and she winced as the pain intensified, the feeling of a thousand sharp knives stabbing through her skull, ripping her brain apart. And as soon as the pain came, it stopped.

Reopening her eyes cautiously, expecting the pain to return, Jessi shook her head, wondering what had caused the intense pain, for it was surly the most horrible headache she had ever felt.

All the stress in her life lately was extremely unbearable. She had dealt with her relentless need for improving her abilities, her irrevocable love for Kyle, and her unbelievable discovery of Sarah's letter, which last night, she found out was written by none other than Cassidy, the man she and Kyle was just beginning to confide in. But what did that mean for Sarah? Was she alive? And if so, where was she? Jessi had no idea, yet she knew that she had to find her mother. That was her mission now.

She began to look about the dark room, unable to see much besides a small streak of moonlight on her wall. Focusing her mind on her surroundings, Jessi manipulated her eyesight, shifting to night vision, something she had learned from Josh and Andy's G-Force game. Green, black and white figures became visible, and she looked to the clock that read 5:12 a.m.

"Ugh," Jessi sighed. She hadn't been getting very much sleep, well, ever. The more Jessi thought about it, she had never once in her life slept a full eight hours, recommended by Nicole. Strange nightmares and flashbacks almost always occupied her mind at night, yet one in particular seemed to stand out the most.

The sight of a man in a red-plaid shirt, squirming in mid-air as a pink-goo covered hand choked his neck. Then, the image would fade away, and transform into a glass cabinet holding inside a picture of a beautiful smiling young woman, holding up a trophy. Jessi remembered smiling at the photo, shifting her eyes to the face reflected in the glass to compare her mother's face with her own; so young, and so similar to hers in appearance that it was scary. Then suddenly, something hit the glass, shattering the cabinet, frame, and the reflection into pieces, before disappearing altogether.

Jessi was unsure what the nightmare meant, but she knew it was trying to tell her something. She focused on the object that shattered the glass. It was small, small, and round. A marble, maybe? No, it had to of been something more significant…Jessi tried to concentrate on the object, using both sides of her brilliant mind to identify what it might be. Consequently, when just as she began to zero-in on the object, her agonizing headache returned. She withdrew from the memory immediately, shifting slightly and stretching her leg out, only to freeze when she felt an incredible warmth radiate as her foot grazed a very large calf.

She tensed, looked to her right, and found something she could only describe as a miracle. There, sprawled out on her bed, fully-clothed and sound asleep, laid Kyle, the very object of her heart's desire and the only reason on the planet for her existence. She gasped, then closing her mouth, afraid to wake him up. She wondered if this was a dream, but suddenly the night's events flooded her mind: Kyle held her tight to his chest, cradling her in his arms, and rubbing her back as she sobbed uncontrollably at the revelation of her Sarah's letter being false. She had felt his lips press to her forehead and his fingers run through her hair, massaging her scalp as she cried herself to sleep. It was all too impossible to believe, yet it was real, and the proof was lying not a foot away from her.

She turned onto her side, scooting closer, but never touching him. She watched with curiosity; the rise and fall of his chest, the way his dishelved hair laid on his forehead, and the position he slept in—so funny. His arms wrapped around Jessi's pillow, his head resting on top, his leg angled slightly. It was then that she noticed his blue shirt form the party still covered his chest, but it was lifted up, revealing his nicely toned stomach, belly-button free. Jessi never had seen a sight more beautiful than Kyle sleeping there in her bed.

She had always dreamed of them sleeping next to one another, other circumstances of course, but she was just as ecstatic to have him there. She smiled, desperately trying to refrain herself from stroking the skin of his exposed stomach. She wondered if it was as soft as she had felt it the first time he showed her that they were the same. Cautiously, she reached out her hand to his mid-section.

"Hmm…Jessi…" Jessi's hand froze, inches away from her desired destination, when Kyle spoke. She looked up at his face, seeing his brows scrunch together, eyelids twitching as his lips opened and closed, releasing a final sigh and continuing his slumber. Jessi zoned in on his heartbeat, calculating the beats per minute, concluding he was indeed asleep.

Letting out a relieved sigh of her own, Jessi reluctantly withdrew her hand and gazed up at his lovely face. Her eyes, just inches away from his lips, scanned his face. She guessed that he was dreaming, and of her! His hot breath blew gently into her face, spreading a warmth unknown to her through her cheeks, her stomach, and other places she had never felt before. What was this strange reaction, and what was it about Kyle that caused her body do such odd things? She didn't know, as long as he laid there next to her, the feelings continued to take over her senses. He was so close, yet so far.

Jessi wanted nothing more than to touch his face, run her hands through his messy hair, hold him tight in her arms, but she knew that could never happen. He loved Amanda, she wasn't really sure why, but he did so, unconditionally. No matter how idiotic, pushy, and stubborn Amanda could be, Kyle always loved her. And even as jealous Jessi was, she knew that Kyle's love was the only thing worth living for. He always put his needs aside for the needs of others, always lending a helping hand, and always giving them something to believe in.

Jessi couldn't hate Amanda for noticing this about him—no one could—but she desperately wished it was her that his heart yearned for. All Jessi ever wanted, no, needed, was his love and acceptance. Without Kyle in her life, life seemed meaningless. He was the only one who could truly understand what it was like to be different, to be like her. The only one to show her life and give it meaning. The only one that could make her heart soar and break at the same time. She didn't know how it was possible, but that's what he did. He made her want to live. And she loved him, loved him more than anyone else in the world could ever love him.

Jessi shifted her gaze from his face to his neck, noting a strange glow from beneath his collar. She pulled back his collar, careful not to wake him, and discovered the crystal necklace from the party, glowing bright red. She pulled it gently up to her face, examining the color in amazement. Why was it glowing? Didn't the chemical imbalance in his body prevent the elements in his crystal from radiating a color? Yet, here was his necklace, producing a scarlet shade of the spectrum.

Extremely curious now, Jessi looked down to her own neck, finding her necklace buried beneath the front of her red dress. She pulled the string, removing the crystal from her breast, and held it up next to Kyle's, once again examining the color; it was identical to his. When she put the crystals together, their glow intensified exponentially, turning the once bright red, into a blinding white light. Squinting her eyes to see, Jessi moved the crystals away from each other and they went back to their red color.

How strange a reaction it was! Jessi couldn't wrap her mind around a plausible reason why together, they formed such a color. She was shocked at the news, although she should have guessed based on all that the two already shared, yet, she couldn't help but run through her mind all the possible things the color had meant.

"Kyle and I have perfect chemistry." Jessi thought, eyes shifting from the crystals to his face, and back to the crystals. Because the colors were the exact same, and the fact that they didn't light up at the party, revealed to her that the chemical imbalance in Kyle's body, must be the same for her.

It made sense. They were created similarly, from the same type of pod, and the same laboratory, but they were also different, different in the way that their creators could only imagine. It made sense that they could be meant for one another. Kyle was reasonable, calm, and trusting; Jessi was unpredictable, unstable, and blunt. Together though, through anyone's eyes, they seemed unstoppable and inseparable. It made sense that the crystals lit up, for their creators, Adam and Sarah, both incredibly amazing people themselves, cared for each other so much that it had hurt to know they were no longer together. Jessi feared a separation between her and Kyle everyday and she wondered what the future held for the two. For now, she believed Amanda would continue to cloud his mind, but Jessi knew that as long as he was there for her, she would always wait for him—.Her soul mate.

Reluctantly getting out of the bed, unable to think of all the horrible situations or conversations that could take place if Kyle had awaken to her presence, Jessi opened her closet quietly, grabbing a black top and jeans, before stealthily exiting her room, and heading toward the bathroom.

She undressed and stepped the shower, under a warm waterfall that washed away all her worries from her mind. She picked up a lime-green bottle of shampoo, squeezing the creamy solution into her palm and massaging it into her scalp and throughout her hair. No sure what it was, the warm water or the feeling of her hands in her hair, that ignited a fire deep inside of her; a burning sensation that automatically brought her mind to Kyle. This was bad. His face filled her mind as each and every single drop of water slid sown the curves of her naked body, each making their own special path down her back and legs.

She opened her eyes, wiping the soap away from her face, and lifting it up to the showerhead to rinse the rest of the shampoo out of her hair. Her fingers traced her cheek to place a wet lock of hair behind her ear, stopping momentarily when the touch of her hand caused the memory of Kyle touching her tear-stained cheek to flood her mind. It was relentless. Kyle's face, his hands, his body, his voice, his everything was all she could think of. She leaned against the shower door for support as her legs began to shake. All these strange urges and reactions were new to her. What was she going to do to stop them?

Anxious to see what else might happen, Jessi stood up and quickly finished washing her hair and body, ignoring the burning memories of Kyle touching her as she did, grabbing her towel and stepping out of the shower. She dried off, got dressed, and wrapped the towel on her head, heading down the hall.

She tiptoed through the house like a mouse, trying not to wake up the Trager's. She heard Josh's deep snoring and Lori's deep breathing that indicated their status. She crept slowly past her door, peeking in to see Kyle still asleep, though his position had changed. He still lied on his side, yet his arms held tightly Jessi's large body pillow to his chest. The pillow was so long that Kyle wrapped his legs around the bottom as well. Jessi couldn't help but visualize herself as the body pillow, wrapped up in Kyle's arms and legs. She smiled briefly, before it turned into a frown, as she wondered if it was her he still dreamed about or his precious Amanda.

With a small sigh, she continued through the hallway, down the stairs, turning right to Kyle's room. She looked about the room, deciding to turn on the desk lamp rather than use her night vision again; she walked over to his desk. As the light from the small lamp cascaded throughout the room, she pushed the power button on the computer, and looked around. Kyle's tub looked so lonely, just sitting there in the middle of the floor, cold and all alone.

She stepped in. Jessi didn't know what came over her, but she always wanted to lie blissfully in his tub herself. It felt nice, cold, but nice. She relaxed into a comfortable position, laying her head onto the blue-plaid pillow. It was soft, and fluffy, but also firm enough to forget the fact that she was in a tub. She pushed her nose to the fabric, taking in Kyle's scent, committing it to memory. She closed her eyes momentarily, just enjoying the feeling of being in his tub, when she heard a small beep.

She sat up quickly, looking around for any signs of danger. She didn't like that she was this paranoid, but it had startled her. She looked to the desk to find the computer screen on and ready to go. She climbed out of the tub, and sat down in the desk chair, grabbed the mouse, and began researching. She now knew that Sarah's disappearance was not on her own free will, and possibly could mean the worst. Yet, Jessi refused to think negatively of her mother's well-being. If she was going to find her mother, she needed to have a clear mind and a positive attitude.

She ran her mind on where Sarah could have gone. She really had no idea, but she did have some clues. She remembered Sarah rented her car from a car rental company called Budget and she rented it under the name Sarah Baylin. After a good 15 minutes and so simple hacking, Jessi found out that Sarah's rental car had been returned the day after she supposedly left town. She called the rental company, but found out that no one saw who dropped off the car, so she didn't know for sure if it was Sarah, but she hoped.

Jessi slammed her fist onto the desk, immediately wishing she hadn't, but she couldn't help but take out her frustration on something. Her attempts to find out more about Sarah's disappearance failed. She realized that the only way to find her mother was to confront Cassidy himself, and get the truth from him. But she knew Kyle would try to hold her back from a physical attack. And she needed him for this, she just knew, without him she wouldn't find out what happened to her mother.

A sharp pain once again stabbed her brain, causing Jessi to let out a small cry. Every time she concentrated too much her head felt as if it was going to explode. She knew she needed a break from all the researching, but she really wanted to find her mother. After ten torturous more minutes of intense pain and a few short You Tube videos, the headache ceased. She was about to look up the local bus loggings when a flashing pop-up link caught her eye.

Now normally, Jessi would just ignore these pop-ups because they usually lead to annoying viruses that take about a whole three minutes for her to get rid of, but this was different than the more sexually revealing websites that she had seen Josh go on.

'Watch Music Videos From Your Favorite Artists Now! All Free!' Jessi wasn't sure what made her click on the icon, but her curser found its way to the 'Click Here' button. A music broadcasting website came up, displaying all sorts of music from all the new aged artists and old. There was a section near the top that read: 'What Others Are Watching Now'. Jessi decided she might as well click on one as she already decided to enter the viral website.

[Watch this music video here: .com/watch?v=zSxoKQ_sWYY ]

A video popped up, piano and violins played softly in the background as a young woman knelled on the floor, buried an old photo in the dirt below the floorboards, and rose. Her long, wavy, black hair ran down her back as she began to walk around the room. Icy blue eyes flickered back and forth from the camera and the room.

Jessi sat mesmerized, watching as slender pale fingers traced across a bookcase, turning everything she touched black. Jessi's ears suddenly perked up as the woman opened her mouth, a sound more pleasant than anything she had every heard escaped from her lips. Her voice, perfectly pitched, as her words entered her ears, soothing her mind. Jessi never heard music so, well, heart felt. Having knowledge of both the great Beethoven and Mozart, this song, although not as complex, provided a much more soulful melody, one Jessi had never, ever, heard in Amanda's collaborations.

Fire ignited about the room, but the woman ignored the fiery flames, sitting at her grand piano, continuing to play as everything around her burned to a crisp. Then, as the woman held a long note, rain fell upon her face, putting out the flames. The woman smiled joyfully as she continued to sing watching in wonder as green vines quickly grew, covering the floor, the walls, the piano, blossoming blue buds before the screen went black.

Captivated by what she saw, Jessi stared blankly at the screen, trying to understand the symbolism and meaning of the song. Everything the woman had touched turned black and died. Jessi felt as if she knew the woman's pain, for everything Jessi ever touched seemed to end in consequence. All the people in Jessi's life either deserted her or hated her. She knew that the Trager's didn't hate her, but she knew that she was a burden to their perfect lives. She felt that the only one who really cared for her was Kyle. If only he knew how much she cared for him.

The faint sound of a door opening sparked her attention, and Jessi focused on the noise, discovering its origin was not from inside the house, but from the house next door. She peeked through the blinds, and saw Carol and Amanda Bloom standing on their porch. Having trouble locking the door, Carol Bloom spoke agitatedly to her daughter.

"I just don't know why you pushed that charming young man away, Amanda. He was such a good role model for you—smart, handsome, focused, and in college—He's perfect!"

"Ugh, Mom! I already told you. It's more complicated than tha—"

"Oh, don't tell me you still like that strange boy next door. Don't you remember how upset he made you last month? He's trouble, Amanda, and I don't want you to spend your summer hung up on some heartbreaker."

"Mom, please, can we just drop it? I'm going to be late to work." Amanda spoke, obliviously annoyed with her mom's constant lecture. They continued to talk as they got into the car, voices fading away.

Jessi thought about what she had heard and what she told Amanda last night. Maybe Amanda had realized that she and Kyle were over. Jessi could only hope. She knew Kyle had a strong hold onto Amanda, like he was under her spell, but how?

Jessi remembered how Kyle always listened intently to the soft, gentle sounds of her piano… That was it! It was Amanda's music that had Kyle transfixed. Putting the thought on the back of her mind, Jessi had this sudden urge to research the song's notes to try out the piano herself. If Kyle liked girls who could play the piano, Jessi would learn the hell out of it. Turning away from the window, and back to the computer screen, Jessi had some more research to do…

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More to come! Part 2: Kyle...


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